Compreeor vs. reverb.

[Bud Angelotti]

Hoping some of you folks could make some suggestions.
We have recorded some vocals with a singer who has a big, deep, low voice. It's crying for reverb on this voice, however, I want to "tighten" up the sound and I would think thats' a job for some compression. Is this defeating the purpose?, putting compression as well as reverb on a single element?
I know the bottom line is how it sounds, but am I just chasing my tail or maybe I need different compression settings which are not my forte'.
Thanks in advance!

[Rick Schacter]

It's crying for reverb on this voice, however, I want to "tighten" up the sound and I would think thats' a job for some compression. Is this defeating the purpose?

No. Compression and reverb should be ok together.

Go to sites like Gear Slutz and see if you can find some articles about applying compression.
This is something that I find difficult to get a grasp on too.
Usually, the rule of thumb is, apply it sparingly.

If you can hear the singer's deep breaths, you can hear too much sibilance and the singer's voice sounds "squished", then you've applied too much.

Then there's always "if in doubt, leave it out".
Take the tracks to someone who knows what they're doing if that's possible.

[John Macy]

Slow attack and fast release on the compressor is the way to go--2:1 to 4:1 ratio...don't hit it too hard going in cause you can always add some more during the mix...

[Bud Angelotti]

Thanks John, I will try this - the mistake I made when tracking the deep voice was having him too far from the mic. Large diaphragm mic & deep voice sound great, good levels, but I should've had him closer to the mic.

[Les Cargill]

Thanks John, I will try this - the mistake I made when tracking the deep voice was having him too far from the mic. Large diaphragm mic & deep voice sound great, good levels, but I should've had him closer to the mic.

How far "too far"? Depending on the room, this may be just fine. Are you trying to exploit proximity effect on a cardioid? Just add EQ if that is the case.

Most vocal tracks are *too* close. I've been known to stick an SM58 ( or whatever the singer uses live ) up and put a condenser off to the side, out of the wind blast. I'll keep both tracks and usually the condenser is less irritating.

Closer will make the track peakier and more ( perhaps ) needful of compression. Small motions of the singer result in larger changes in distance and angle when you are closer.

[Bud Angelotti]

Thanks Les,
AT 4033 is the mic.
What you are saying makes sense to me! Thanks!
Not trying to exploit anything, just tighten up the big deep voice. We are processing it to make it even lower! It's actually, more talking than singing, and he has such a deep tone.
It's a holiday song so I'll be posting it soon.
Thanks again!
Bud

[Tony Prior]

fYI, compression is a processing tool to assist in taming high passages , reverb is a TIME effect which adds room dimension.

the proper order of things:

compression, eq, drive,modulation then time at the very end

And yes, many folks over compensate on compression which can add a nice warm smoothing of the overall sound but it can be overdone very easily.